The Rising
by Amber Stones
Summary: This is my first book that I have wrote, as i usually write short stories. I apologies for the quantity and the quality as I have never done this before. if you write a review, please give me tips on how i can improve as I hope to improve my writing. I will be grateful if you review my book. Thanks! Amber :-p xx
1. Chapter 1: The Journey Begins

The night was closing in on us. Sooner or later, we would have to stop and rest. Our leader, Blade, told us he didn't want to stop in the woods, but I'm not sure we can go on much longer. We are tired and our army is wounded. If we want to get to the Rising alive, we shall have to stop.

I approached Blade, hoping to speak my mind, but he turned to face me and shook his head. "We must keep going. I told you we are not stopping in the woods. If we stop, we become vulnerable. Do you want that, Gwendolyn?" He looked at me, his eyes filled with question.

I shook my head.

"I thought so. I know we are weak, but when we get to the Rising, we will grow. We will heal. We will become strong again."

I nodded in agreement, but my heart tried to resist. _We won't make it alive._ I thought to myself.

"We cannot heal and grow if there is no one left," I grumbled.

Blade turned away from me, and I moved back to my previous position.

I looked at the people around me. There were women who carried babies that looked far too thin. Children, no older than seven, walked alone because their parents had died either by fighting in the war or from fatigue and disease. Trudging along were teenagers carrying younger siblings too weak to walk and with no one else to carry them. Men were few; most had died in our battle.

Families were broken, lives were shattered, yet we carried on. There was no time for despair and sadness. Our village's motto was 'No Matter How Bad It Is, We Never Leave Anyone Behind'. People are still living up to that. If someone falls, a person nearby will help the fallen get back up.

The people are being brave. They were told to brace themselves for the worst — and they did — but not even Blade could predict a blow this hard the village. Yet we carried on in silence. We did not stop. We never stopped walking, believing, and hoping. And so we are still here; still alive.

Now all we can do is pray that God will spare our lives... until we reach the Rising.


	2. Chapter 2: Mountain Ambush

The Rising: Chapter 2

The wind picked up as we got higher into the mountains. There was a chill in the air, biting at our skin. But Blade kept up the pace, overcoming any obstacle he faced. Blade was only 19 years old, however he was ruthless. He had bulging muscles, which complemented his personality perfectly. He wore a belt which held a short knife, a sword, a water pouch and a shield. He was one of many that carried weapons at his waist, but few of these men had a Mortem blade. He was given this by the killer of his father, on his behalf. He also inherited his father's horse, Shield. Shield was a great chestnut stallion, with a long, midnight black mane and tale. He was strong, fast and powerful. Together, Blade and Shield were virtually impossible to defeat. No man has ever beaten Blade, besides one. And that man is the reason we are all here now.

As we neared the top of the mountain, I turned round and looked at our survivors. There were just over a quarter of our village left, which is about 80 people, including me and Blade. But some survivors were on the verge of death, and wouldn't make it until we reached our destination. Most of the people left were men who had been trained to cope with harsh conditions. A small majority were ordinary men and women, most looking tired and ill. But there were only enough children alive to count on one of my hands. Some parents had stopped and rested there deceased child by a tree, blessed them and carried on with their journey. Others held on to them, hoping that they were still alive, but knowing inside that they had been taken. A few had even left us so they could rest with their child, knowing that their end was inevitable.

But the ones left had determination shining in their eyes. They knew how much it meant for them to get to the Rising. Then, the howl of a wolf broke our long silence. Many of the people were surprised to hear the sound, but quickly grabbed their weapons and anything they could find to defend themselves. In normal circumstances, the women and children would be protected by a ring of soldiers, but as there were so few of us, even they grabbed weapons. The howl has stopped, and was replaced by low pitch growling. Then the beast appeared. It was much larger than an average wolf, probably bigger than Shield and Blade combined. It had muscles that ran up its legs, making the wolf look even bigger. Its fur was white, but stained with mud and blood. Its teeth were as sharp as Blade's knife, but that didn't stop him from attacking it. Shield charged at the beast and Blade unsheathed his sword. The wolf began to run, heading towards Shield and Blade. _Something isn't right. _I thought. Then I noticed that the red splodge on the wolf's neck wasn't blood. It was a light. I looked closer, and saw a silver collar. _The wolf is being controlled by radio._ I tried to shout Blade, but someone grabbed my throat and tightened their grip. I found myself unable to breathe and my attacker's hand squeezed the air from my lungs. My vision was getting blurry and I could see black spots. His other hand was holding my arms round my back. I saw a shape rapidly moving towards me. Then, the person that held had attacked me let go. I dropped to the ground, gasping for breath. Once my breath had returned, I looked up. Blade was hovering over me.

"Are you ok?" He asked me.

"Yes, yes. I'm fine." I gasped

"Good. Then we can keep moving." He started to walk away from me, when I grabbed his arm.

"No. We have to rest. If we don't, none of us are going to make it alive." He looked me in the eyes. He sighed and shook his head.

"We will stay one night. We will go at dawn. Anyone who we cannot wake, we leave behind." Then he walked away to Shield.

A few people had died during the attack, bringing the amount of people left down to 58. We made a few camp fires, which Blade immediately put out, telling us we would be vulnerable if they could see the flames. So for the rest of the night, we huddled up under whatever we had salvaged from our village, and tried to get some rest before we set off to the Rising again.

(Gwendolyn's dream/memory)

_Smoke filled the air. Houses were burnt down to ashes, along with people's lives. Bodies were on the ground, soaked in blood. The screams of women and children could have been heard from miles away, yet no one came to our rescue. Every village knew that this was happening, but no one showed up to help. They were scared. They feared the man that ruled our kingdom. But there was one place where there would be no fear. There would be no smoke and ruined lives. There would just be peace. This was the place where Randall couldn't touch or harm. This place was what we called 'The Rising'. Every man and women who had heard of this place and lived under Randall's rules thought of this place as paradise. But no one could speak of this place. Not on his soil, anyway. But everyone thought of it. _

_Another crash and more screams. 6 more people dead. I'm not sure how much longer we can survive. I have been lay here for countless hours, but the screaming hasn't subsided. I wanted to help, but they told me I couldn't, as they would need me if I survived. If I survived. That's what he told me. They think I'm going to die. But I won't. I will make sure I don't. Because I am strong. There was a flash of light and the screams stopped. The sound of feet hitting the hard surface had disappeared. Everyone in the chamber had stopped moving. There were around 300 people in here. We stayed like this for another half an hour. There still was nothing. Then someone got up and opened the chamber door slowly. He took a breath, and stepped out. Then he gave us the all clear. As I got out of the cramped chamber, I wanted to go back inside. Countless bodies layered the soil, all with looks of horror and shock. Even the army that attacked us had that same look. Then Blade, who was stood next to me, uttered something._

"_Seiko"_


End file.
